Blizzard — Kit Carson County, Colorado

2024-01-08 · Kit Carson County, Colorado

Event narrative

A widespread area of snow moved over the eastern three-quarters of Kit Carson County producing four and a half hours of blizzard conditions. Conditions were mainly observed at the Burlington ASOS (KITR) with gusts up to 59 mph and visibility of less than one-quarter mile observed. High winds gusting 58 to 59 mph occurred sporadically over a duration of two hours from 11:53 AM to 1:53 PM MST over the Burlington ASOS. Total snowfall ranged from a trace over the western portions of the county, such as Flagler, to two inches in Burlington. Interstate 70 had to be closed for a few hours from Burlington to the Kansas state line due to road conditions.

Key impacts: limited visibility, snow packed roads, blowing and drifting snow.

Wider weather episode

A widespread area of snow moved over portions of Kit Carson and Cheyenne counties producing blizzard conditions up to four and a half hours and up to two inches of snow. Winds gusted up to 60 mph across the two counties, with the peak gust and snow amount observed in Burlington, Colorado. Highway 385 from Cheyenne Wells to Burlington, as well as Interstate 70 from Burlington to Kansas, had to be closed for a few hours due to the hazardous road conditions.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1154803. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.